Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to publish plans for office closures within her Department.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
As part of the department’s People Strategy and in line with the government's commitment to a more productive, agile and efficient civil service, the department has developed a long-term locations strategy. This includes closing six of our smaller sites and moving towards a focused 8-site model, with locations at Bristol, Cambridge, Coventry, Darlington, London, Manchester, Nottingham and Sheffield. My noble Friend, the Secretary of State for Education does not plan to publish plans for office closures. Our external communications are focused on the department's strategy, delivery and changes impacting the sector. This is an internal issue for the department.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the savings targets are for each directorate in her Department for (a) 2026-27, (b) 2027-28 and (c) 2028-29.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Each year, the department must make tough decisions to ensure every pound of taxpayers’ money is driving high and rising standards for our children, ensuring every child has the best start in life.
The department considers priorities across the department to determine how best to allocate its available funding.
A breakdown of the department’s funding for 2026/27 will be published in due course in the 2026/27 Main Estimate and in each subsequent year. This will be published on GOV.UK.
The 2025/26 Main Estimate can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/main-supply-estimates-2025-to-2026.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will (a) complete a full skills audit of staff within her Department and (b) share that audit with trade unions.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department supports 15 professions to which we encourage staff to align themselves, and we collect data monthly on the number of members of each. As part of the Government Skills Campus platform, which is currently in development, the department is exploring the most effective ways to capture the live skills of staff. The department will then seek to agree with trade unions an appropriate approach to sharing this data.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish her Department's (a) business case, (b) workforce plan, (c) equality impact assessment and (d) redundancy mitigation measures for the plans to close six offices.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education does not plan to publish the business case, workforce plan, equality impact assessment or redundancy mitigation measures for the department’s plans to close six offices. This is an internal business decision and does not impact the department’s remit, strategy or delivery plans, nor have any direct impact on the sector. As such, it is not appropriate for the department to comment on the plans externally.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve accessibility to higher education for people with progressive neurological conditions such as Friedreich’s ataxia.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to ensuring that all students are supported to both access higher education (HE) and to thrive while they are there. For example, in our recent Skills White Paper we committed to significantly increasing the take-up of the Adjustment Planner. This allows all individuals to go through the support that they think would be right for them and discuss this with the people they are studying with.
It also remains the case that HE providers have responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments for all their disabled students.
Wherever possible, disabled students should expect to have their needs met through inclusive learning practices and individual reasonable adjustments made by their provider.
In addition to reasonable adjustments, the Disabled Students’ Allowance is available for the provision of more specialist support. For students with progressive neurological conditions, such as Friedreich’s ataxia, this may include assistive technology.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support kinship carers in Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend constituency.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Local authorities in England are responsible for setting out a Kinship Local Offer, which outlines the support available to kinship carers and the children they care for.
This offer should cover all types of kinship care arrangements, both formal and informal, and can include information on financial support, legal advice, training and peer support, and educational and emotional wellbeing services.
Nationally, support is available to kinship carers through peer-to-peer support groups and a programme of training, delivered by the charity Kinship. This includes free workshops, events and access to advice and guidance. Virtual School Heads also work with schools to promote the education of children in kinship care and ensure their needs are met and kinship carers in Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend can benefit from this.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an estimate of the number of Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund applications that received match-funding in (a) Newcastle upon Tyne and (b) North Tyneside in (i) 2023-24 and (ii) 2024-25.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The table below confirms the information requested.
Financial year | Newcastle upon Tyne | North Tyneside | ||
Applications | Match funded | Applications | Match funded | |
2023/24 | 57 | 2 | 53 | 0 |
2024/25 | 43 | 1 | 44 | 1 |
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an estimate of the number of children with approved Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund applications in (a) Newcastle upon Tyne and (b) North Tyneside in (i) 2023-24 and (ii) 2024-25.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The table below confirms the information requested.
Financial year | Newcastle upon Tyne | North Tyneside | ||
Applications | Match funded | Applications | Match funded | |
2023/24 | 57 | 2 | 53 | 0 |
2024/25 | 43 | 1 | 44 | 1 |
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of childcare support for PhD researchers on the demographics of people who take up studentships.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Student parents are eligible for the universal 15 hours of free early education which is available to all 3 and 4-year-olds regardless of family circumstances. Students who work in addition to studying may be eligible for 30 hours free childcare if they meet the income requirements.
The government recognises the value of parents continuing in education and provides a range of support for students in higher education to support them with childcare. Further information on the childcare offers available to parents can be found at: https://www.beststartinlife.gov.uk/.
The government introduced new support packages for students starting postgraduate master’s degree courses from the 2016/17 academic year onwards and postgraduate doctoral degree courses from 2018/19 onwards. These loans are not based on income and are intended as a contribution to the cost of study. They can be used by students according to their personal circumstances to cover the costs of fees and living costs including childcare. The new support packages have provided a significant uplift in support for postgraduate students while ensuring the student support system remains financially sustainable.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of support available to PhD researchers with the costs of childcare.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Student parents are eligible for the universal 15 hours of free early education which is available to all 3 and 4-year-olds regardless of family circumstances. Students who work in addition to studying may be eligible for 30 hours free childcare if they meet the income requirements.
The government recognises the value of parents continuing in education and provides a range of support for students in higher education to support them with childcare. Further information on the childcare offers available to parents can be found at: https://www.beststartinlife.gov.uk/.
The government introduced new support packages for students starting postgraduate master’s degree courses from the 2016/17 academic year onwards and postgraduate doctoral degree courses from 2018/19 onwards. These loans are not based on income and are intended as a contribution to the cost of study. They can be used by students according to their personal circumstances to cover the costs of fees and living costs including childcare. The new support packages have provided a significant uplift in support for postgraduate students while ensuring the student support system remains financially sustainable.